Intel Core i7 Mobile laptop chips to be served with Windows 7

Your order for Windows 7 is here -- you want chips with that? Good, because that's exactly what you're getting -- and not just any old chips, either. Laptop manufacturers are gearing up to release machines that use Intel's next-generation Core i7 mobile chips, codenamed Clarksfield, on Intel's next-gen Centrino platform, codenamed Calpella.

MSI is the first to let its cat out of the bag, Gizmodo reports. Its Core i7 offerings will sport 15.4- and 17-inch screens and will utilise the Core i7 7200M, i7 8200M and i7 820XM versions of the mobile chip. There's no word on other specs for the laptops, but given the amount of horsepower promised, it's safe to assume they'll pack high-cost, high-end components.

Cheaper alternatives to the Core i7 mobile range aren't too far away. Laptops using Intel Core i3, i5 and a tweaked version of the i7 -- codenamed Arrandale -- are threatening to arrive during the course of the fourth quarter, and will feature in a variety of laptop styles, including machines in the same vein as the Dell Adamo and MacBook Air. At the moment, no manufacturer is willing to release concrete information on those offerings, but they're definitely out there, and they're heading for a Windows 7 laptop near you.

This raises the question: should you buy a Windows 7 laptop now, or wait for more up-to-date hardware to arrive in the near or near-ish future? It's a tough decision to make, but Intel's new CPUs and platforms should offer excellent performance and/or improved battery life, and should significantly drive down prices of current-gen hardware.

We're pestering MSI and other manufacturers for a go on one of the Core i7 mobile machines as you read this, and will bring you more information as we get it.